''The mother of the book''

In the sight of God, everything has taken place and finished in a moment. Since the beginning of time, everything has taken place at this single moment. In the sight of God, all information pertaining to this moment is kept in a "Book." This "Main Book", or as the Qur’an calls it, "The Mother of the Book", holds every bit of information about everything:

And truly, it is in the Mother of the Book, in Our Presence, high in dignity, and full of wisdom. (Surat az-Zukhruf: 4)

… with Him is the Mother of the Book. (Surat ar-Ra'd: 39)

We possess an all-preserving Book (Surah Qaf:4)

Certainly there is no hidden thing in either heaven or earth which is not in a Clear Book. (Surat An-Naml: 75)

And the Book (of Deeds) will be placed (before you); and you will see the sinful in great terror because of what is recorded therein; they will say, "Alas for us! What a Book is this! It leaves out nothing small or great, but takes account thereof!" They will find all that they did, placed before them and your Lord will not wrong anyone at all. (Surat al-Kahf: 49)

In other verses, too, God declares that all the events one experiences, all the thoughts one considers, and everything that befalls one are included in this Book:

Nothing occurs, either in the earth or in yourselves,without its being in a Book before We make it happen.That is something easy for God. (Surat al-Hadid: 22)

Actually everything, living or non-living, which has existed since the beginning of the universe and all events, which have happened, have all been created by God. Consequently, God is cognizant of them all. To put it in another way, "They all exist in the memory of God." In this sense, the Mother of the Book is a manifestation of God's attribute, the al-Hafiz.

At this point, we come upon a striking fact: because the memory of God is infinite, nothing existent in Him becomes lost. In other words, no living being created by God vanishes, no flower fades, no drink finishes, no period comes to an end, and no food is consumed. Every moment God creates and every exact detail of everything are created in eternity and it is "destined to eternity."

What then does this phrase "destined to eternity" mean?

Let us put this explanation in the following way: eternity has begun for a being or an event by the time it is created. For instance, when a flower is created, it is, in reality, destined not to disappear. That this being ceases to become a part of one’s sensations and is erased from one's memory does not actually mean that it has vanished or died. Its state in the sight of God is what actually matters. Furthermore, all states of this being, be it its creation, all moments throughout its life or death, do exist in the memory of God.Upon all that is created, God bestows eternity. In other words, existing things have attained eternity by the time they are created.To have a thorough grasp of this notion, however, one needs to reflect on all beings and events individually. This is no doubt the most important information one can ever acquire in one’s lifetime. Most probably, many people are hearing and reflecting on these facts about timelessness for the first time in their lives. However, here is something important to keep in mind: God, in the Qur’an, draws our attention to the fact that "only those who sincerely turn to God" take heed. In other words, only those who truly seek the guidance of God and endeavour to appreciate His infinite might and His greatness will heed these explanations and have a grasp of these facts.